#i'm thinking got thoughts in this chili's tonite

[whateverthedragonswant]

So I keep rewatching that Tyrion and Sansa scene in the crypts before they go to save the others, over and over again. It's such an emotionally intimate moment between them but I for the life of me could never figure out why they cut the Tyrion and Sansa fight scene (while keeping Emilia's requested Dany fighting scene in) even though they shot it. Perhaps it was due to time constraints as some had suggested when the episode aired but if that's the case then why did they keep Arya's line of "Stick 'em with the pointy end" to Sansa in? Why did they not cut out the part of the Sansa and Tyrion scene where she's the first to draw out her weapon? That plot point for Sansa's story in this episode (as well as Tyrion's), especially when connected with "None of us can do anything, that's why we're down here. It's the truth. The bravest thing we can do now is look the truth in the face", literally leads to nowhere without that fight scene (meaning in connection to her fighting for her people & to save them). "I'm not abandoning my people." But looking at it in a big picture and semi-abstract way, I do wonder if perhaps it was cut because it was done to be one of the many things they decided to hide for Dany's eventual dark turn. Hear me out.

The reason I say that is because right before we see this scene with Sansa and Tyrion (hiding behind the tomb), we see Jon's run through Winterfell to get to Bran. And what do we see?

We see Gendry and Tormund fighting together. We see Sam in trouble as he's fighting that Jon makes the decision to continue no matter how much you can see he hates to do it. We see Grey Worm fighting (alone). We then see Jaime and Brienne fighting together (and even though we don't see it in this shot, we know from a later shot that Podrick is with them fighting as well). The only enemy at that point is the WW.

Not to mention, before Jon's run, we see Dany alone, by herself, saved in the nick of time by Jorah (from her retinue). They are cut off from everyone else and both fight, but Jorah eventually dies.

In the scene after Jon's run, we see Theon fighting alongside Alys Karstark (though we don't see her in a shot, we know she's there from an earlier shot) and their soldiers to protect Bran.

Then we come to the Tyrion and Sansa scene.

So you have Dany (South-Targaryen) and Jorah (North-Mormont but also South because he is part of Dany's retinue & goes where she goes). Then a Baratheon (even though he's not legitimized yet he's still a Baratheon) and a Widling fighting together (aka South and North). Then Sam (North-The Wall and South-Tarly). Then Grey Worm by himself (not of Westeros; part of Dany's retinue). Then Jaime (South-Lannister), Brienne (South but also North because she's protecting Sansa or more appropriately, going from South to North), and Podrick (same). Theon (both South and North-both Greyjoy and Stark -> ends as a Stark-North) and Alys (North) protecting Bran (who ends up as the 6K King in the end). Then Sansa (North-Stark) and Tyrion (South-Lannister).

You literally have the house names we recognize in Westeros that are left at this point in time being represented (as well as the Wildlings) and they are all fighting up North, alongside everyone else, and fighting for survival against this terrifyingly dangerous enemy. The only houses that are cut off from everyone else are Targaryen and Mormont (the same house that gets ended this episode), and is it any wonder they have Jon running by himself (when he doesn't know who he is yet)? Not being completely cut off but also not fighting alongside anyone else though he wants to but only has one mission in mind aka protecting Bran/killing the NK?

Put all of that together plus this scene:

(there is so much going on in this scene but the part I'm talking about is where Missandei has her reaction to what Sansa says & then walks away, alone -> we know Varys wasn't blindly devoted to Dany despite being part of her retinue & after Jorah is gone, Varys is the one to start voicing his doubts to Tyrion & the audience)

And then I remembered this scene from 8x04:

Dany is not happy overhearing Tormund praising Jon for not only something she herself has done but she's also feeling threatened now that she knows who Jon is (which is confirmed by the dialogue in the bedroom scene after this). But Jon (regardless of his dual heritage) is sitting with the Wildlings and previously Sansa was there as well (Stark). Then Dany sees Tyrion laughing and enjoying himself with Brienne, Podrick, and Jaime. We know that Dany views Jaime as an enemy and that had Jon (and Sansa) not decided to recruit Jaime rather than execute him, he would be Dracarys'd already. Brienne is the one who spoke up in defense of Jaime (plus remember that whole line from Dany to Tyrion back in 8x02 of "Perhaps because he knows his brother will defend him right up to the moment he slits my throat"?) that led to Sansa's decision that then led to Jon's. Pod is with Brienne. Sure enough, Dany then looks back at Jon and Tormund/the Wildlings again before getting up to leave. We also see Varys notice not all is well.

And then:

This is not the first time Cersei has been unable to have Tyrion killed after she is Queen. They make sure to show us Dany's reaction to this (and even Euron's). They even made sure to show us how intent Dany is while waiting to see what happens (and to show us Grey Worm looking over at her briefly so the audience will make sure to focus on her if they're not already). Dany is initially not pleased and looks almost angry but also not surprised or relieved. A small glimmer of hope (maybe for Missandei's release?) mixed with confusion (maybe because she's wondering what Cersei is up to?) follows after. But the anger was already shown. Even Euron is surprised and appears unsure why Cersei spared Tyrion. (Euron, the lone Greyjoy in contrast to Theon being with the Starks, who is only with Cersei for a certain reason; Cersei being the lone Lannister; Dany being the lone Targaryen because Jon has the Starks in the first half of the season & Dany never truly trusts him after she finds out the truth about him)

The thing is, while Cersei and Dany share many parallels (and I would even argue that certain aspects of the Mad Queen narrative are split between them leading up to their endgames which proves they are anything but mad), in the end, Cersei did not give up on her family. "Everyone who isn't us is an enemy." No matter how much she hated Tyrion or felt betrayed by Jaime, they were there for her in the end (in their own ways) and she couldn't swing the sword on either of them so to speak. Which is interesting given that she did not fight with the others at Winterfell (or send her army to fight) and didn't care about the one thing that mattered: survival. She had no issue with others killing Tyrion or Jaime (for example, the trial of Joffrey's murder; sending Bronn up North with a crossbow with their names on it - though for this one I'd argue she knew that Bronn would most likely be talked out of it since Jaime met with Tyrion in secret; Jaime choosing to go North to fight which he very well might not have come back from & she knew it since she saw the WW threat was real, etc.), but when it was at her command, in front of her, she never took the opportunity. And Jaime you could understand as her twin, her lover, but there was no reason for Tyrion. Except that they were family, no matter how much she may have despised him, or he her. Even when he killed Tywin; even when he joined Dany and came with her to Westeros; even when Cersei makes it clear that she knows exactly what Dany is to Tyrion.

So even though Cersei didn't care about anyone else and she didn't fight for anyone else (and she certainly wasn't a benevolent queen), she still cared for her brothers on some small level because they were the Lannister trio (as well as being in love with Jaime for many years and only trusting him). So not fighting with them but still...a part of them. Especially when you compare it to the Starks and Jon, and then Jon and Dany as the Last Two Targaryens.

So my whole long point is I wonder why if they cut that scene out not just for possible time constraints but also to help contribute to keeping the point of Dany's dark turn hidden.

Because you have a Stark and a Lannister working together to save people as well as each of their lives (and families by extension).

Which very well echoes the ending episode in where Bran becomes King and he makes Tyrion his Hand. "He's going to fix what he broke." And there are no Targaryens left alive (minus Jon who is banished/exiled, not an accident btw) or in power. The Targaryens have been removed completely from the map as well as from any kind of power in the world.

So I wonder if in a roundabout way, that's why this particular scene was removed. I could be completely wrong and I'm just thinking out loud here, but given the scene's removal after it was filmed when there were other gratuitous shots from that episode that could have been removed to help those time constraints, something just isn't jiving if that's the actual reason. Especially since they introduced that plot point for Sansa in the episode and it never came to fruition. (knowing D&D, I think they thought that scene between Sansa and Tyrion was enough, as well as showing us the moment the Crypt Wights were destroyed by the NK's death and us seeing Sansa and Tyrion right there in front of anyone else, knives in hand - sigh)